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Saturday, October 2, 1999
Sens' depth to pay off
There is no doubt about that.
The big question is just how much do they slip?
The Senators still have one of the deepest rosters in the league, with seven NHL defenceman and good wingers on both sides.
But they say a team's strength is down the middle and that is where the biggest question marks loom, the first being the absence of a legitimate No. 1 centreman.
"I'm not sure you can ever replace (Yashin)," said assistant coach Perry Pearn. "When a great player like that goes away, you don't ask anybody to replace him. You have to do it other ways.
"Having three balanced lines and a strong defensive line will be the strategy. Our team game has always been the reason for our success and that will continue to be the focus."
The other big change is in goal, where Ron Tugnutt takes over the top job after splitting it for the last three years with Damian Rhodes.
But Tugnutt will miss tonight's opener with a lingering knee injury, leaving the job to Patrick Lalime, who hasn't played a game in the NHL for two years.
The Senators want to erase the memory of last year's playoff sweep by the Buffalo Sabres in the first round after a club-record 103-point regular season.
"I expect us to finish on top of the Northeast Division. That's what our goal is," said veteran winger Shawn McEachern.
Here's how the team stacks up:
GOALTENDING
Tugnutt wanted the No. 1 job and now he's got it. There are still some who question his ability to carry the load alone. People who question that ability have short memories, forgetting how three years ago he carried the team down the stretch and earned the club its first playoff berth. Tugnutt outduelled Dominik Hasek in that clinching game, posting a shutout. Tugnutt has shown the greatest improvement of his career since coming to Ottawa, improving technically and showing he's a battler. He's the first to admit his outstanding stats are because of the great job his teammates do in front of him. It's not unreasonable to expect him to do the same this year. The question is how he copes with the increased workload.
Lalime is a big guy who had an outstanding start to his career two years ago, but got buried after a contract dispute with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He's got a lot to prove, starting tonight. If he can recapture his rookie form, that will take some of the wear and tear off of Tugnutt.
DEFENCE
The backbone of the Senators is the blue line. Maybe there isn't an elite, No. 1 defenceman here, but they could all play for just about any NHL club. All are mobile and can move the puck, the key to the Senators' transition game. There is no real heavy hitter among them, but they can win their share of battles along the boards.
If there's one area where more can be expected, it's in the defenders' ability to get involved in the offence. Jason York was the top pointgetter last year with four goals and 31 assists. Wade Redden was the top goal scorer on the blue line with eight. The Senators need a couple of other guys to get at least that many. A good candidate is Sami Salo, who scored four goals (including a hat trick) in his last eight games last year.
The club also needs veteran Igor Kravchuk, who spent a lot of time on the point on the power play, to net more than four goals.
FORWARDS
The Senators have one of the deepest left wings in the league with Shawn McEachern, Magnus Arvedson and Rob Zamuner. The right side isn't too shabby either with Daniel Alfredsson, Marian Hossa, Kevin Dineen and Andreas Dackell. Role players like Bruce Gardiner, Shaun Van Allen, Steve Martins and Andre Roy are all competent at their jobs.
Without Yashin, however, the club doesn't have a dominating centre. Vaclav Prospal and Radek Bonk will have to suck up some of Yashin's minutes. Prospal is centring McEachern and Alfredsson while Bonk is back with Hossa and Arvedson.
Rookie Mike Fisher will be asked to play a defensive role while the club finds out if he can compete in the NHL on a daily basis.
The club is not asking any one player to replace Yashin, but it's clear Prospal and Bonk will have to do more. Alfredsson must recapture his form after two injury-riddled years and Hossa must continue to improve offensively. If those four players can meet those challenges, the impact of his absence will be greatly reduced.
COACHING
The Senators are the best-coached team in the league. Jacques Martin, the winner of the Jack Adams Trophy as the NHL's coach of the year, Pearn and now Andre Savard have been able to get the players to buy into Ottawa's commitment to defence, a commitment that will have to be renewed this year without Yashin.
SPECIAL TEAMS
For an elite team, the Senators' power play left something to be desired. It ranked only 15th overall last year and getting more goals with the man advantage would give the club a huge boost. The Senators really need a quarterback to step up on the blue line.
The penalty killing improved as last season progressed. It wound up third in the league at home and eighth overall. The Senators need the penalty killing to hold its own and the power play to move into the top-10 in the league.
INTANGIBLES
The strength of the Senators has been their reliance on a team game. Yashin had a breakthrough year last season, but the Senators were not a one-man show. That said, replacing 44 goals is not easy.
In a perfect scenario, the Senators will challenge for the Northeast title again. What's more realistic is a better-than-.500 record and a better showing in the post-season. If the Senators win just one playoff game next spring, this year will be better than last in a lot of people's minds.
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